Kicking ball

[Steven Rules]

In stableford, par/bogey, and maximum score formats, if a player’s ball in motion needs to be holed to score on the hole and any person deliberately deflects or stops the ball at a time when there is no reasonable chance it can be holed, there is no penalty to that person and the player gets zero points, a loss, or the maximum score respectively on the hole. (See respective Exceptions in Rule 21.)

Addendum - note that this Exception only applies if the ball in motion needs to be holed to score, as opposed to just generally stopping it beecause it is about to go into a penalty area. Nevertheless I'll eat a tiny slice of humble pie here and concede that as long as the player intends to record a zero (or maximum) score for the hole, I would accept the stopping of a ball that is clearly headed for a penalty area.

 

[Steven Rules]

I can think of only four situations covered in the Rules where deliberately stopping or deflecting a ball in motion isn't penalised. A mate yelling out "stop my ball" isn't, of itself, necessarily one of them, and nor is stopping or deflecting a ball solely because it is about to go into a penalty area or out of bounds (but see the fourth one below for more info).

The four are:

*in match play when there is no reasonable chance the ball can be holed (Rule 3.2a(1) and Exception to Rule 11.2a)

*lifting a ball that is moving in water (Exception 3 to Rule 10.1d and the Exception to Rule 11.2b)

*playing a ball that is moving in water (Exception 3 to Rule 10.1d)

*when there is no reasonable chance that a ball dropped in the right way will come to rest in the relief area (Exception to Rule 14.3d)

*in stableford, par/bogey and maximum score formats - if a player’s ball in motion needs to be holed to score on the hole and any person deliberately deflects or stops the ball at a time when there is no reasonable chance it can be holed, there is no penalty to that person and the player gets zero points, a loss, or the maximum score respectively on the hole. (See respective Exceptions in Rule 21.)

Feel free to add others if you can think of any.

 

[rulefan]

B didn’t instruct A .
A instinctively kicked it back into play .

I was responding to posts #7 & #15

 

[salfordlad]

B didn’t instruct A .
A instinctively kicked it back into play .

Affirming Rulefan's comment: post #15, saying penalty to both, is a direct response to #7 which asked a follow up question.

 

[cliveb]

I can think of only four situations covered in the Rules where deliberately stopping or deflecting a ball in motion isn't penalised.

Feel free to add others if you can think of any.

A player has miss hit his ball and it's about to hit my head.
Am I allowed to put up my hand to stop it?

 

[Steven Rules]

A player has miss hit his ball and it's about to hit my head.
Am I allowed to put up my hand to stop it?

Are you sure he mis-hit it?

 

[Swango1980]

A player has miss hit his ball and it's about to hit my head.
Am I allowed to put up my hand to stop it?

Nope. And, if you do, you should be disqualified and ejected from the club.

 

[salfordlad]

A player has miss hit his ball and it's about to hit my head.
Am I allowed to put up my hand to stop it?

The USGA has confirmed there is no issue with protecting yourself in situations like this.

 

[Swango1980]

The USGA has confirmed there is no issue with protecting yourself in situations like this.

This made me chuckle.

I can imagine a Committee member who was prepared to discipline / penalise a golfer who protected themselves from getting smashed in the face with a golf ball, and required confirmation from the USGA that disciplinary procedures could be relaxed in this scenario

 

[Colin L]

This made me chuckle.

I can imagine a Committee member who was prepared to discipline / penalise a golfer who protected themselves from getting smashed in the face with a golf ball, and required confirmation from the USGA that disciplinary procedures could be relaxed in this scenario

A player has miss hit his ball and it's about to hit my head.
Am I allowed to put up my hand to stop it?

It's really a simple matter that an instinctive reaction to a ball heading towards you isn't deliberate.

 

[D-S]

It's really a simple matter that an instinctive reaction to a ball heading towards you isn't deliberate.

I think it is deliberate, if I saw a ball flying at someone (or me) I might try and bat it away from them if they weren’t aware. It is a deliberate action taken in self defence or in defence of someone else, it’s not accidental.

 

[Swango1980]

It's really a simple matter that an instinctive reaction to a ball heading towards you isn't deliberate.

But, if it was that simple, a player stopping a ball going into the Penalty Area might also be instinctive. If they've seen it fly towards it last second, and instinctively put out a foot to stop it. But I was lead to believe that this would not stop them getting penalized?

 

[Colin L]

But, if it was that simple, a player stopping a ball going into the Penalty Area might also be instinctive. If they've seen it fly towards it last second, and instinctively put out a foot to stop it. But I was lead to believe that this would not stop them getting penalized?

That is not an instinctive action.

 

[Swango1980]

That is not an instinctive action.

It can be. I've actually seen a person in the past throw out a foot to stop the ball, and then look up with wide eyes, obviously thinking "oops, can I do that???". They had no time to think what they were doing, and just instinctively tried to stop a ball going in the water

 

[RichA]

It can be. I've actually seen a person in the past throw out a foot to stop the ball, and then look up with wide eyes, obviously thinking "oops, can I do that???". They had no time to think what they were doing, and just instinctively tried to stop a ball going in the water

Yep. I've cropped a cast iron Le Creuset pan lid in the kitchen and instinctively tried to kick it back up into my hands as if it was a football. It didn't end well.
Same thing - instinct sometimes overrides doing what's sensible. Although I'd argue that saving your mate's £4 golf ball is actually sensible, as long as he takes a drop for going in the penalty area that the ball would have been lost in.

 

[Ye Olde Boomer]

At my club, we'd just keep playing as if nothing happened.

A Pro V1x costs nearly five bucks, and we're seniors on a fixed income.

Who wouldn't stop a ball from drowning if he/she were able?

 

[salfordlad]

This made me chuckle.

I can imagine a Committee member who was prepared to discipline / penalise a golfer who protected themselves from getting smashed in the face with a golf ball, and required confirmation from the USGA that disciplinary procedures could be relaxed in this scenario

The USGA was responding to a far less dramatic question than what you have imagined up.